Bandaged McIlroy back on course at PGA

Injured Rory McIlroy, a bandage on his right arm to ease the pain of a strained tendon in his wrist, teed off with his fellow reigning major champions on Friday at the 93rd PGA Championship. The 22-year-old US Open winner from Northern Ireland suffered the injury Thursday when he struck a tree root with his second shot on the third hole, but played through the pain for an opening-round par-70 at Atlanta Athletic Club. McIlroy said he would decide whether or not to play Friday based on his work at the practice range, which went off without a hitch, allowing him to rejoin Masters champion Charl Schwartzel and British Open winner Darren Clarke. American Steve Stricker, who matched a major tournament record by firing a seven-under 63 on Thursday to seize the lead, and countryman Jerry Kelly, his pal and nearest rival at 65, were set to be among the last to tee off Friday. Among Friday's early starters, Sweden's Anders Hansen made the only charge. He birdied the par-4 second hole to reach three-under par for the tournament, four off the pace along with American Scott Verplank, another late starter. American Shaun Micheel, third after an opening 66, stumbled back early Friday after a back-nine start. The 2003 PGA Championship winner opened with back-to-back bogeys to fall to two-under overall. US players dominated the leaderboard, each hoping to be the one to hoist the Wanamaker Trophy, take the top prize of $1.445 million from the $8 million event and snap a record American win drought of six majors. "What has happened in the last six majors, I think, fuels the fire of Americans to try to get better and to work at it to try to break that streak, no doubt," Stricker said. Then there was the dismal showing of Tiger Woods, a 14-time major champion who opened with a 77 to stand 14 strokes off the pace, sharing 129th and in jeopardy of missing the cut for only the third time at a major after the 2009 British Open and 2006 US Open. Healthy again after going nearly four months without a competitive 18 holes, Woods nevertheless staggered in with three double bogeys in his worst opening round at a major and his worst round in any US major. Woods has not won a title since his infamous sex scandal unfurled in November of 2009 and has not won a major title since the 2008 US Open. England's World No. 2 Lee Westwood and Australian Jason Day, a runner-up at the Masters and US Open, were just on the course, both having opened with 71. Also just out was England's Simon Dyson, who shot 68 Thursday to lead the charge for the "Chubby Slam", a potential sweep of the year's major titles by players managed by Andrew "Chubby" Chandler. Other afternoon starters included World No. 1 Luke Donald of England, who began on 70, and John Senden, the low Australian on day one with a 68.